…it goes without saying that no one who has commented associated with Chasing Trails in any way unless it’s specifically mentioned. Along those lines the tweet from James was from quite a long time before he was sponsored by Chasing Trails for skills coaching.

Thks v much for Saturday – had a great day, and learnt a lot. Looking forward to getting out and practising, assuming we’re not flooded out by then!Dave

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Re: Coast to Coast

Hi Steve, just a quick e-mail to say thank you for a fantastic few days, I am sat in my office wearing a shirt and Tie which is not going down too well anyway and looking out at the sunshine and cursing under my breath because we have finished, I thoroughly enjoyed it and I must admit I was a little apprehensive before we started but not now it was brilliant and made even more so purely by the way you play it. Again Steve many thanks for your help and I will hopefully speak to you soon,Terry

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Hi Steve, many thanks for the jumps course yesterday. I stayed on afterwards at Dixon’s Hollow for an hour or so to consolidate what I’d learned. I can do it, I can really do it! (Finally).

I’ve been on jumps courses with two other companies and yours was the first to show a different technique for drops as opposed to jumps. Also the only one to check bike suspension set up (too much rebound damping on my bike). You only used three different obstacles and this allowed us plenty of repetition to build the skill and to challenge the muscle memory. In addition, the obstacles were relatively easy rather than the scary things I’d been faced with on other courses that had led to injury for myself and others.

I now need to build on the things I’ve learned, but thanks to you I’ve made the breakthroughSteve

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Steve, just wanted to email and say many thanks for today, the instruction was second to none, and was broken down into manageable chunks, which both me and the wife could understand. My confidence has took a huge boost as has the wife’s. Can’t wait to do another day hopefully in the not to distant future.

Cheers,Benjamin

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Hi Steve,

Just wanted to say thanks for the 1 to 2 day last week. We both had a thoroughly good day and I personally learnt a lot.

Steve has a relaxed and easy-going manner that is more ‘slowly, slowly catchy monkey’ than up and at ’em but its exactly what I needed. I no longer approach every obstacle with the word ‘attack’ in my head but now try to be as smooth and controlled as possible (some work to do yet!). It’s no exaggeration to say that by the end of the day he had completely changed my entire approach to the way I ride. As a previous reviewer has said he takes the time to watch what you do, and listen to you. He then works with that to slowly change the way you go about it, rather than dictating the ‘right way’ to do it. I can thoroughly recommend him to anybody who’s looking to improve and if you’re a bit more of an aggressive rider who’s looking for more flow/control then he’ll be right up your street!Colin

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Once again I would like to thank you Steve from myself, Dave and Stuart for a great day on Friday 24th Feb. We all agreed that this will take us to the next level and give us the confidence to tackle bigger and tougherRegards, Darren

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Just wanted to say thanks again for helping me out with a bike maintenance day at very short notice. You’ll be pleased to know (not as much as me) that I made it through Cytech. One bloke had a bamboo road bike, very nice too. Thanks again, Mick

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“Having been a mountain biker for the best part of 20 years, being a regular racer in a variety of disciplines and an SMBLA leader as well I’d thought myself pretty handy on the bike but the more I thought about it the more it seemed like good sense to make sure that actually I was. It also seemed like a good opportunity to deal with some of the more intimidating technical features I’d previously shy away from (like the big near vertical rock slab just off the fire road on to one of the black sections at Dalby) when riding black routes. So when it came to my wife asking me what I wanted for my birthday, rather than the usual socks, handkerchiefs and underpants I asked her to pay for me to do a skills day. I’d already done a bit of research and, living close to Dalby, Steve seemed to fit the bill for what I wanted. I got a 1 to 1 session with him midweek so the trails would be nice and quiet and when the appointed day came, we met up at the trailhead

Steve immediately made me feel at ease with his easy going style and his passion for biking was clear from the start as the conversation flowed. I’d already discussed my thoughts with him over the phone and so we got down to business with drops and rollers, berms and switchbacks on the red and then some more extreme stuff on the black. He also took me through some of the features on the black that I’d not had the confidence to ride before, showing me that I had the skills to tackle them, all that was lacking was that confidence. Steve’s teaching style really suited what we were doing, demonstrate, practice, consolidate, and, as with all good teachers, he didn’t adopt a ‘do as I do/say’ but showed me techniques and encouraged me to try them out in comparison to my own style to see if they worked and fitted with what I wanted to achieve in my riding. If I preferred the way I did things then he showed me methods of improving on them instead

It was a great day and Steve’s flexibility in planning the session around my needs was really helpful. His tuition really reinforced what I already knew, ironed out some bad habits, taught me a few things I didn’t know and gave me the confidence boost I needed to take my riding a step further. All in all, a great guy to spend a day riding with and the time passed far too quickly!”Dave Tortoishell

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I attended a maintenance course with Chasing Trails with a friend of mine. I wasn’t quite sure what to expect but it surpassed my expectations. The instruction was first rate and has enabled me to carry out maintenance tasks i previously would have had to pay considerable sums for. Highly recommendedSteve Merifield

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Hi Steve, just wanted to say thanks for the tuition at Dalby. Took a trip to Lee quarry the next day and managed the complete black run, which i hadn’t done before so definate improvements madeAndy

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Hi Steve, just a quick thanks for a great day on the intermediate course. Second visit to you and it was again brilliant. Plenty to work on just like last time, I will keep trying the berms!!!!!Thanks again for your patience, perseverance and encouragement. Great jobMark

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I undertook my first riding skills course with Chasing Trails, not knowing quite what to expect. I thoroughly enjoyed the day. Steve’s coaching was great; very attentive and focused, and I left with a clear understanding of what I had learned and a keen desire to take it even further. I would thoroughly recommend the course to anyone who wants to get more out of their riding and, most importantly, to understand what it is all about and what is meant to happen!Miles Martin

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Hi, steve, would just like to say thanks very much for a fantastic day we had in Dalby on the skills course. Being taught the proper riding techniques has made a masive difference in my riding, making me faster,smoother and most of all a safer rider! Every ride out im putting it all into practise,and its a great feeling when powering out of a corner knowing ive hit the perfect line.not every corner goes to plan,but im learning from my mistakes!! Still eying up the drop at ’worrys gill’ ,will let you know when ive done it. Thanks again, and will highly recomend you to other riders. Cheers, Tom

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Huge thanks goes to @ChasingTrails for the excellent skills tuition he gave me. Probably the best bike related purchase I've ever made

What a great day; mountain biking in Dalby Forest with an instructor who felt more like a mate than a teacher.

Although I’ve been mountain biking for a number of years now, I’ve had a couple of “offs” which told me that I need more than just speed, instinct and b*lls to improve my skills. This course did it for me. Just by covering some basics, gave me a new perspective on my riding, stuff which your mates have probably tried to tell you but Steve gets it right, without being patronising.

The only way to test and try the techniques is by practicing and what a trail to practice on. The red/black routes in Dalby have pretty much everything you will ever find anywhere, with a massive grin factor whatever your level of experience.

This is a great course for honing your skills and maybe providing extra ones you didn’t realise would help.

Regards, Geoff– emailed regarding a group skills course in May ’11

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Hi Steve,

just wanted to say thanks for the training day, I learnt alot and improved my technique loads, I have ridden a couple of times since and I feel less achey which is probably down to been smoother and faster. Many thanks once again and I would recommend Chasing trails to anyoneGraham McKinley

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Hi Steve,

The skills course was very useful thanksI particularly liked the way you tailored the day to suit the areas I needed to improve the most. I would highly recommend a course to anybody wanting to get the basics right, as I did. Many Thanks,Gary (1:1 day)

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“I did course at Dalby with Steve from Chasing trails. He was brilliant and would recommend him to anyone. Already 5 of my biking friends have done a groups course with him on the moors. (edit – Dalby Forest)He is a very good teacher and got me and bro doing the black run by the afternoon. He covers all major skills but he will do anything you want.”

“Just wanted to drop you a quick email to say thanks for an enjoyable day

The 2hr drive back home gave us plenty of time to reflect on the day. We really had a good day, and definately feel we’ve become better riders, and more importantly, safer riders. We both came away with new skills, but also it was very reassuring to know that we were already doing some basic things correctly like braking. We found the day well structured, with plenty of time spent on each section. So now its just a case of getting out there and ride!”Simon & Kenny

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“Thanks for a fantastic day on the 4th May. I hadn’t done much off road, so thought some training might be the way to go. Your approach and support to the teaching was brilliant. I loved every minute, I now can’t wait to get out there and try all the skills and hopefully improve on them. I now feel I can tackle a lot more of a trail than before, with new found confidence, and if something does go wrong I will have an idea of why, and how to rectify it. Rather than just avoiding the problem. Once again, thanks very much and I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend you to everyone. Hopefully, see you again, I now fancy the advanced level course!! I can feel an addiction coming on”Mark Gascoigne

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“Thanks again for an excellent day, I really enjoyed it and have gained loads of confidence to get out there and do more!”Pam Johnson

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“I did a day with Steve yesterday and I found it very useful. My confidence is not the best as I am a new rider but Steve was very patient and able to teach me alternative ways of tackling obstacles and highlight some of the bad habits i’d picked up

One bad habit is I instinctively unclip a pedal when I get nervous – I now understand why this gives me less control! Also, to go over obstacles I was pulling up on my handlebars when I should be pushing forward and leaning back.

I’d recommend a session whether you are a complete beginner or even more experienced but have difficultly with certain techniques (or just want to go faster)”Raj – (Wicked2627 on bikeradar)

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Hi Steve,

Just a short note to say thank you for the beginners course I completed last Saturday. Having ridden bikes all my life but being new to mountain biking I was not sure if the beginners course would be too basic, but now that I have completed it I am glad that I went for this one and didn’t just jump straight to intermediate.

Although the weather did its best to ruin our day I still thoroughly enjoyed it and learnt plenty of new skills which I can now take away and practice.

Kind regards

Howard

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“I’ve done a day with Steve and Chasing Trails and found it a really fun and useful course! I bought it for my girlfriend for her birthday last year and we both enjoyed it. Comes recommended from me!”Bikeradar post by Chris (1:2 skills day)

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“Roo, as Steve said, we dropped into the area along the logs on the Red, the ride along the bottom of the Gully didn’t look too bad but the rock drop into it on the WC course just looked mental. We followed the Red out the other side to the fire road and onwards up into the woods again.

Bloody good day, thoroughly enjoyed it and would have no hesitation in recommending Steve to anyone thinking of doing a skills course.”

“I too can comment on how good Chasing Trails areRecently went on one of Chasing Trails 7Stanes weekends. Fantastic couple of days on some brilliant trails!”Bikeradar post by Craig(now running MTB breaks himself at chase2coast.co.uk)

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“Steve thanks for a fantastic days tuition, some really useful techniques and tips covered which will ensure my future rides are a lot more enjoyable and ultimately quicker (excluding greasy berms!). After my day at Dalby, my confidence to tackle obstacles I would normally avoid, has increased tenfold. I would highly recommend Chasing Trails to anyone that feels they can improve their technique at any level. Once again thanks for a fantastic day outDave

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“Very enjoyable; relaxed atmosphere and a great location. Chasing Trails organised a short notice course which was basic enough for my wife to gain a lot of confidence from, but interesting enough to sharpen up my rusty MTB skills. I would recommend a Chasing Trails course to anyone wishing to try MTB for the first time.”Mike & Kath Gill

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“I found the day really useful and I feel that my riding has moved to the next level”Phil

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“As part of geting the wife and I into using the bikes offroad I looked for a company that could offer some skills training. From a post on this site [Bikeradar] I contacted Steve at Chasing Trails.We booked a day (our wedding anniversary present to ourselves) with Steve to have a go at Dalby Forest. He took us through some basic skills like braking and balance to start with and then progressed onto the trail (red route) to cover drop offs, berms, climbing and many other useful snippets that as novices will prove to be invaluable as we start to get more and more into this sport.Steve is a genuinely nice guy that clearly loves his biking and this is shown in his approach to the course, This was the wifes first proper go on the trails and she was impressed by Steves attitude and approach. He explained everything, demonstrated it and even stood there ready to catch you just in case…”Bikeradar post – James

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“My day with you Steve was first class. Your patience was tried many times I’m sure but I learnt a lot with your help.Just goes to show you can teach an OLD dog new tricks. I recommend Chasing Trails for all ages. Thanks again.”Mike (Whitby)

(Mike is the oldest Chasing Trails customer so far, proving that age doesn’t have to be a barrier. But it doesn’t seem right to give away his age!)

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“One to one coaching in Dalby was a great day out – Steve is an excellent, friendly and above all patient coach – I rode away at the end of the day feeling much more confident and inspired to ride more often. Will definitely be returning for more.”Richard